Why the Polar Cloud is Great for Libraries

Many libraries are offering 3D printing to patrons and the local community now. If you're a library that has a few 3D printers, it's likely that you have some sort of process or workflow that helps you organize patron requests and charge the end patron or user for the print job they have submitted.

However, complications can arise!

• Librarians that operate the 3D printer have to do most of the work, exhausting and burning out the team members that specialize in working with the machines
• Patrons are not automatically notified when their print is complete and ready for pickup, so finished jobs can stack up in precious library space
• Patrons are not able to be involved in the printing, so they do not take ownership in their print or learn much about the 3D printing technology
• There is no tracking system to ensure fair and equitable use of the machines
• There is not a Queueing system to show a user how much longer they can expect to wait

In an effort to curtail some of the issues above, arbitrary limits (2 hour max print, etc.) are placed onto patrons in an attempt to bring order to the 3D printing services, which can in-turn render the service useless to users with projects of certain requirements.

Well.. How Does The Polar Cloud Help?

Library Patron Workflow

1. User signs in to Polar3d.com
2. User enters the "Member" join code for the lowest level of printer access
3. User uploads or imports their design file for 3D printing
4. User submits it to the librarian lab managers in the form of a "Job Request", where they can specify the number of copies, request certain colors and filament types, and leave comments or details about their print job
5. User can track their job's progress in the print queue or receive SMS and Email notifications about their job

Library Lab/Printer Manager Workflow

1. Lab manager has Polar Cloud notifications set up to their liking and waits to receive incoming job requests
2. Lab manager selects as many jobs as they'd like to print at once, and prepares them for printing. Once started, all parties will receive a notification, updating them on their job
3. Lab manager operates the printer normally and clears the printer to receive the next job
4. Repeat steps 2-3

If you are choosing to charge the library patron based on the job, you can do that as well! The consumable costs and charges are shown below, where you can enter your own desired rates.